2020-21 Bolton Wanderers F.C. Season
<- 2019-20 Bolton Wanderers F.C. Season -> 2021-22 Bolton Wanderers F.C. Season The 2020-21 season is Bolton Wanderers' first season back in the Championship following their promotion from League One by finishing 2nd. Along with the league, the club will also participate in the FA Cup and the EFL Cup. They will compete in the FA Community Shield after winning the FA Cup Final last season against Leeds United. As a reward for completing a League Cup and FA Cup Double, Bolton will qualify for the Europa League group stages for the first time in 12 years. The season covers the period from 1 July 2020 to 30 June 2021. Season history Bolton compete in the FA Community Shield for the first time since their debut win in 1958. 62 years later, Bolton beat Premier League runners-up Tottenham Hotspur 2-1 at Wembley. This result means that Nery is unbeaten against all meetings with Premier League teams. Bolton now have won the past 3 domestic trophies. On 28 February 2021, Bolton retained the EFL Cup - the first time in the club's history in which a trophy has been retained - by beating Marcelo Bielsa's Leeds United 3-1 at Wembley. This brings the total of League Cups won up to 2: both won under Nery. On MD 43, after beating Middlesbrough 2-0 at home, promotion to the Premier League was confirmed after a 9 year absence from the top flight. On MD 45, after beating Huddersfield 2-1 away, Bolton win the Championship title for the fourth time in the club's history - first since 1996-97. On 22 May 2021, Bolton faced Premier League champions Manchester City in the FA Cup Final. Bolton were the defending champions - City last won it in 2019. Manchester City won 3-2 in extra time after drawing 2-2 in the 90 minutes. This defeat means that Nery's unbeaten record against Premier League teams is gone. Bolton competed in the 2020-21 UEFA Europa League. Their first appearance in Europe since the 2007–08 UEFA Cup. Bolton began their third-ever European campaign with a 2-1 win against Hoffenheim at home. They preceded to win the remaining 5 group stage matches - without keeping a clean sheet. They finish top of the group and is drawn to Lokomotiv Moscow in the Round of 32. The first leg in Moscow was won by 3 away goals to nil. The second leg was 1-1 draw (4-1 agg.). Wanderers reach the Round of 16 for the second time in their history. Vincent Kompany's R.S.C. Anderlecht were drawn against Bolton in the R16. A nil-nil draw occured at the City of Bolton Stadium; a 2-2 followed the result in Belgium. This was enough for Bolton to progress to the quarter-finals as they progressed on away goals. In the quarter-finals, Bolton faced Bayern Munich, with the first leg in Bolton. They notched a notable win against Bayern - a representative scoreline of 2-0. In the Allianz Arena, Wanderers notched a famous victory which saw them progress to the Semi-Finals as they won 4-0 on aggregate. In the Semis, they faced a stern test in İstanbul Başakşehir F.K. The first leg was slated to be in Turkey - with a solid 3-1 victory. Bolton won by the same scoreline in front of the highest attendance the City of Bolton Stadium has ever seen. This result means they win 6-2 on aggregate. This means that Bolton Wanderers reach a European final for the first time in their history. On 26 May 2021, the 2021 UEFA Europa League Final took place. Bolton Wanderers faced off against S.L. Benfica at the City of Manchester Stadium (Etihad Stadium). This was the first meeting between the two teams. Bolton thrash Benfica 8-0, with the "host" team leading by 4 goals to nil at half-time. This is the biggest final victory in any UEFA competiton. This victory gives Bolton a European trophy for the first time and they qualify for the UEFA Champions League, making their debut in Pot 1 next season. This also means that they'll compete in the 2021 UEFA Super Cup, against UCL Winners, RB Leipzig. Competitions EFL Championship League Table © Champions (P) Promoted (PO) Play-off Winner ® Relegated * Bolton qualify for the 2021-22 UEFA Champions League due to winning the 2020-21 EFL Cup and the 2020-21 UEFA Europa League. Results by matchday Matches FA Cup EFL Cup UEFA Europa League Bolton will enter the Europa League group stage as they won the EFL Cup and the FA Cup last season. Group table Results by matchday Matches FA Community Shield *Premier League champions Manchester City were unable to compete as the FA and EPL had sanctioned them due to fielding an ineligible player in the Premier League, thus being replaced in the final by runners-up, Tottenham Hotspur. Squad Goals record - Borja Llarena scored both goals in Bolton's triumph of Tottenham Hotspur in the Community Shield. Assists record - Connor Hall assisted both goals in Bolton's triumph of Tottenham Hotspur in the Community Shield. Clean sheets record Transfers Transfers IN Loans IN Transfers OUT Loans OUT Overall transfer activity: 'Expenditure: '-£8,625,000 'Income: '+£2,632,000 'Net Total: '-£5,993,000